A/N: Awww, guys, I've noticed a rapid increase in the Story Alert, Favorite Author, and Favorite Story rate for Rambling, and I really appreciate that you took time to read my story. Wouldn't it be lovely if every single one of you reviewed even if it were only a few words? :D

Le sigh. Well anyways, I didn't want you to keep on hanging for too long. Chamber of Secrets is coming to a close and more Fremione shall ensue! ^-^

Hope y'all enjoy this, I know I did~ :)

Disclaimer: Do you own it? Me neither!

"Rambling"
by SJRegina

Hermione always found herself rambling whenever in the presence of the one and only Fred Weasley, but that's just how Fred liked it.

Chapter 16: The Basilisk Snake

"Hermione." A soft voice called over her. "It's time to wake up."

She fluttered her eyes slowly, her lashes still slightly wet from the crying. She sniffed the form she was hugging and purred unintentionally at the scent. It was comforting. It smelled like pumpkin spice and gun powder. Like freshly mown grass and a distant musk.

She snuggled into the warmth and closed her eyes again.

Fred smiled at the sleeping form of Hermione. Harry and Ron have just returned and were shocked to see Hermione. But Fred just soothed her. As much as he found her so adorable right now, she needed to wake up and go to the hospital wing.

Fred brushed a curly fringe of her hair and inserted it behind her ear. Her skin was so soft and supple. Like silk or porcelain. He brushed his thumb on her cheek and breathed near her ear,

"Hermione, Professor McGonoggal's calling you." He chuckled as Hermione instantly let go of her hold of Fred and stood up abruptly, slightly hazed from sleep.

He felt guilty for lying, but he was genuinely concerned for Hermione's health.

"Just kidding."

Fred thought this was a joke. A joke! Hermione felt her ears becoming red but then she suddenly remembered the way Fred held her and her dream of Fred and her cuddling in front of the fireplace and the redness that was in her ears moved to her neck and cheeks.

"Fred, thank you." She wished the whiskers covered her blush. The high-pitched voice she still had didn't help her already embaressed form. She blushed all the brighter. Fred offered his arm to Hermione and Hermione inserted her arm on his.

She looked up at him smiling, and Fred was looking down smiling at her. Till George ruined the moment.

"Hermione! A cat really does love its beauty sleep." He laughed nonchalantly which made Hermione giggle and Fred narrow his eyes at him.

George offered his arm and Hermione accepted it with a smile. Hermione had both of her bestmates beside her.

"Hermione, we've told Fred and George what happened. We'll talk about it once you get out" Harry walked to her and smiled comfortingly.

"Yeah. That git isn't the Heir of Slytherin, but he did say some things that were useful." Ron smiled at her. It was one of these rare moments that Ron was actually nice to her. Things weren't that bad after all.

"Now if you'll excuse us." Fred straightened up and raised his chin up imitating Percy.

"We shall escort this fine young lady to the hospital wing." George followed Fred and Hermione giggled.

Harry came over and wrapped his robe over Hermione. "Just thought you needed it." Harry smiled shyly as a brotherly affection.

"Thank you Harry."

Then the twins and Hermione both walked to the hospital wing.

~.~

Hermione remained in the hospital wing for several weeks. There was a flurry of rumor about her disappearance when the rest of the school arrived back from their Christmas holidays, because of course everyone thought that she had been attacked.

So many students filed past the hospital wing trying to catch a glimpse of her that Madam Pomfrey took out her curtains again and placed them around Hermione's bed, to spare her the shame of being seen with a furry face.

Harry, Ron, and the twins went to visit her every evening. When the new term started, they brought her each day's homework.

"If Id sprouted whiskers, Id take a break from work," said Ron, tipping a stack of books onto Hermione's bedside table one evening.

"Don't be silly, Ron, I've got to keep up," said Hermione briskly. Her spirits were greatly improved by the fact that all the hair had gone from her face and her eyes were turning slowly back to brown.

"I don't suppose you've got any new leads?" she added in a whisper, so that Madam Pomfrey couldn't hear her.

"Nothing," said Harry gloomily.

"I was so sure it was Malfoy," said Ron, for about the hundredth time.

"What's that?" asked Harry, pointing to something gold sticking out from under Hermione's pillow.

"Just a get well card," said Hermione hastily, trying to poke it out of sight, but Ron was too quick for her. He pulled it out, flicked it open, and read aloud:

"To Miss Granger, wishing you a speedy recovery, from your concerned teacher, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most- Charming-Smile Award. "

Ron looked up at Hermione, disgusted.

"You sleep with this under your pillow?"

But Hermione was spared answering by Madam Pomfrey sweeping over with her evening dose of medicine.

After Hermione took her medicine, she looked at the mirror her mother gave her as a present to see how her look improved.

Fred and George were just behind them eating chocolate frogs leaving the three having a conversation. After Ron that- that- atrocious thing, George who was about to take a bite from another chocolate frog, was dragged away by Fred by his sleeve.

Once Fred let go of him to go to the end of the hospital wing, George exclaimed, "Hey! What was that for?" George continued to eat his chocolate frog in delight.

"That annoying Lockhart. Concerned teacher? Pssh. Pretty-boy concerned teacher to me!" Fred sat on the bed and bit on his chocolate frog violently, biting its head off.

"Woah there Freddie. Easy on the chocolate frog." George sat beside him and rubbed his back. It was a good thing they had the twin bond. Whenever the other one felt down, the other would just know how to make it all better.

Fred smiled in gratitude to George. "You have it bad brother." George smirked mischievously and Fred just shook his head.

"Whatever Georgie." Fred looked up and saw a large mirror in front of them looking at his face. He looked back at George and said, "But honestly, I look ten times better than him! See?" Then Fred makes a charming smile.

After a while of charming poses, George just couldn't hold his laughter anymore and held his stomach from so much laughter while pointing at Fred's face.

"Your face! HAHAHAHA!" George kept on laughing, his face reddening in glee.

"What's wrong with my face? We're identical dimwit!" Then he looked over at the mirror and groaned as he saw chocolate all over his teeth and some outside his mouth nearby his lips making a distorted chocolate moustache and beird.

But then he joined George and laughed at it as well.

~.~

Life went back to its horrible flow again. Harry and Ron found a diary owned by a bloke named Tom M. Riddle. Turns out it was just dumped there by someone in the girl's bathroom and water was dripping everywhere. Although, there was nothing beneficial from the diary.

Until one day, Harry discovered that it actually was semi-living and replied to his scribbles. It even showed him a memory of sorts that showed that Hagrid was the one who last opened the Chamber of Secrets.

Then the next day, someone had rummaged through his trunk and stolen the diary. But it was also the day for the Quidditch match so they hurried out to the field.

As Harry left the Great Hall with Ron and Hermione to go and collect his Quidditch things, Hermione saw Harry's face turn instantly into worry as they step foot on the marble staircase.

He shouted aloud and Ron and Hermione both jumped away from him in alarm.

"The voice!" said Harry, -looking over his shoulder. "I just heard it again - didn't you?"

Ron shook his head, wide-eyed. Hermione, however, clapped a hand to her forehead.

"Harry - I think I've just understood something! I've got to go to the library!"

And she sprinted away, up the stairs. It finally clicked her, she had read this before somewhere. She was sure of it!

She ran to the library and didn't even bother Pince's scowl at her. She looked over her usual table at the library and took a book from the pile of books she had previously piled up.

She opened it furiously and shook her head and set down the book. This wasn't it.

"It's got to be here somewhere." Hermione flipped through the pages like mad before groaning in annoyance and dropping that book.

"Uhm, Hermione right?" Hermione looked over her back and saw a Ravenclaw prefect, judging from her robes and badge.

"Yes." Hermione replied but then instantly flipped pages of another book.

"Is there anything I could help you with?" The Ravenclaw prefect asked with worry.

"Yes!" Hermione exclaimed. "Yes please!" Then she scattered all the books in the table alarming the Ravenclaw prefect.

"Uhmmm..."

"Penelope." The girl smiled.

"Right! Penelope, I need you to help me find somewhere here that mentions spiders as worst enemies." Hermione grinned excitedly at Penelope.

Penelope nodded her head in agreement and smiled amused by the girl. They had been searching the pile of books for an hours now and with no luck.

"Hermione, Hermione!" Penelope squealed in delight. "Is this it?" She showed the girl the book she was reading.

"Go to page 25-26!" Penelope said and Hermione followed her flipping to page 36. She read the page fastly and smiled wildly. This was what she had been looking for!

"Penelope! Thank you so much! You just helped me find the monster inside the Chamber of Secrets!" Hermione squealed in glee while Penelope's eyes widened in alarm.

"What do you-?"

"There's no time!" Hermione dragged Penelope and ripped the page out of the book. She'd feel guilty for the book later. They rushed upstairs and were now walking in a hallway to the Gryffindor common room when they heard hissing and slithering.

Penelope gulped loudly, "What was that?"

Hermione panicked and rummaged inside her bag fastly, the page containing information about the monster there. Where was it, where was it?

"Aha!" Hermione hurriedly raised the small circular mirror she also used in the hospital wing. "Penelope, don't look at anything else! Look at the mirror."

Penelope did so nervously as the hissing became louder. Hermione expected this was coming and she was now sweating with fear. The mirror she was holding was now wiggling in her fingers but she held it tightly.

Then the hiss grew louder. There at the mirror, Hermione caught a small glance at the monster hiding inside the Chamber of Secrets.

All the information she had just read flashed through her mind in an instant.

The greatest enemies of spders or Acramantula, the King of Serpents that could kill you just with a single glance at its eyes.

And there in the mirror, she saw the monster's golden eyes. Hermione felt her body stiffen and her mind suddenly went blank.

She was frozen, holding the mirror, still clutching the piece of paper in her hand.

There in the paper contained the beast hiding inside the Chamber of Secrets.

The Basilisk Snake.

A/N: I've recently just joined Pottermore and I want to befriend all of you lovelies! My username's QuillFeather3728. Don't hestitate to duel me or what not. :D

I was sorted into Gryffindor! It actually was a tie between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw but I wanted to break the stereotypicality of me being a smart arse and went for Gryffindor. ^-^

And in Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them, the basilisk snake was in page 25-26. The comic relief book. Just wanted to share that piece of information. (^-^o-)

So moving back to the story, thank you all guys. Hope you don't mind reviewing. I don't bite. :)

Next update's coming very, very soon. ;) And don't forget to review on my poll! :D